Programme Specifications

Yes - in the student's place of work

August 2017

The main educational aims of this programme are to:

• provide students with a detailed understanding of the principles and processes that underpin industrial biotechnology, including the social and environmental contexts;

• develop students' intellectual, practical, numeracy, communication, information and communication technology (ICT), interpersonal / teamwork, self-management and professional development skills, in the context of industrial biotechnology;

• inculcate the values of scholarship: inquiry, reflection, integrity, open-mindedness, evidence-based thinking, collegiality in the context of industrial biotechnology

• equip students who already have work experience in the bio-based industries to implement the latest research into their work, and to facilitate cutting edge careers for those who want to enter the industry.

Subject specific skills

The programme will comprise three taught 20 credit modules and 120 credit dissertation. At least one and up to 2 of the taught module will be taken from the modules of the MSc in Industrial Biotechnology J740D. All students will be required to complete the Research Methods module. Subject specific skills gained will depend upon the options taken.

Generic and graduate skills

The students’ key skills, particularly those of communication, research, IT and problem solving, will be developed through formative as well as assessed coursework programmes which will be accompanied by detailed feedback on performance. As such students will have 3 strands to their developmental learning i.e. structured contact, self-directed learning and key skills. An example of this is the research training, which offers strong progression from basic skills, to the thesis. Skills and knowledge acquired from the taught modules are ultimately applied and tested via the thesis which applies the generic and core degree scheme skills acquired. Each of the taught modules will develop students’ ability to integrate theory into practice. The Research Methods module will develop skills in experimental design and execution, data analysis and interpretation to allow the progression, through the dissertation, of principles into practice.

Our objective is to improve the efficiency and economic viability of the industry by equipping students within the industry with the skills and knowledge to embed the latest thinking into their workplaces.

Depending on the options chosen in the taught modules and in the 120 credit dissertation, this MRes will equip students with the skills and knowledge to develop processes and R&D around new feedstocks, biorefining technologies and product development. The work-based dissertation gives them the opportunity to explore this knowledge in the context of their work environment and to build upon it under academic guidance.

By the end of their programme, all students are expected to be able to demonstrate: A1-An A1 An appreciation of the ongoing technological developments within industrial biotechnology A2 An ability to apply a chain perspective in the development of products and processes A3 The skill to evaluate the relevance of new experimental methods and production processes A4 An appreciation of strategies limiting impacts and integrating policy frameworks into development strategies A5 An appreciation of the challenges facing land based agriculture to substitute for fossil carbon

Learning and Teaching

The learning, teaching and assessment regimes encourage progressive acquisition of subject specific knowledge and skills by moving from supported study methods towards the development of the autonomous and reflective learner within each module.

Each is made up of 10 units focusing on separate themes and building the students’ knowledge. Each unit comprises:

• An introduction to its theme

• A guided (and optional extra) reading list

• Unit Study Guide - an interactive pdf on Blackboard that takes students through all the resources for the unit and linking to extra resources on the web

• 2-3 Audio or video lectures

• Relevant peer reviewed papers

• Formative questions and model answers

• An assessed forum

The first unit of each module is ‘Unit 0’. All students are obliged to work through this unit and fulfil its requirements before moving on. This unit introduces students to the key techniques and features which they will be required to use to study the module, e.g. literature searches and reviews, referencing and report writing. It also provides an introduction to studying via Blackboard and a check to ensure that all is working correctly at the student’s place of study.

Assessment Strategies and Methods

There is no exam for the scheme and we have broken the coursework within each module down into fairly short assignments (2 per module plus assessed forum posts throughout each), so that they remain compatible with the students’ working life whilst developing their skills and knowledge. Each of the assignments is keyed to the learning outcomes in the module. Every two to three units, as appropriate, students are provided with:

• a summative assessment (e.g. paper reviews, essays, case reports and presentations)

• a forum on a current topic

The assessed outputs of the Research Methodologies module are: answers to statistical problems; an initial research proposal; and literature review.

Skills and knowledge acquired from the taught modules are ultimately applied and tested via the dissertation which applies the generic and core degree scheme skills acquired.

10.2.1 : Intellectual Skills

By the end of their programme, all students are expected to be able to demonstrate:

• An ability to underpin their own R&D proposals with the newest scientific and technological insights.

• An ability to communicate scientific issues to both the scientific community and other stakeholders including policy makers and the public

• An awareness of the social and societal issues associated with the application (and non-application) of different biotechnology options

• An awareness of the nature of scientific investigation and the application of results into practice to foster greater sustainability and efficiency within industrial biotechnology

Learning and Teaching

The students’ key skills, particularly those of communication, research, IT and problem solving, will be developed through formative as well as assessed coursework programmes which will be accompanied by detailed feedback on performance. As such students will have 3 strands to their developmental learning i.e. structured contact, self-directed learning and key skills. An example of this is the research training, which offers strong progression from basic skills, to the Dissertation

Assessment Strategies and Methods

Each of the assignments is keyed to the learning outcomes in the module. Every two to three units, as appropriate, students are provided with:

• a summative assessment

• a forum on a current topic

Intellectual skills acquired from the taught modules are ultimately applied and tested via the dissertation which applies the generic and core degree scheme skills acquired.

10.2.2 Professional practical skills (where applicable)

By the end of their programme, all students are expected to be able to demonstrate:

• An ability to clearly describe and communicate research findings to a wide range of audiences

• An ability to follow the relevant scientific and technological literature

• An ability to assess, apply and contribute to new scientific and technological developments

• An ability to recognise and link with appropriate expertise centres and experts

Learning and Teaching

Professional skills will be developed will through formative as well as assessed coursework programmes which will be accompanied by detailed feedback on performance. As such students will have 3 strands to their developmental learning i.e. structured contact, self-directed learning and key skills

Assessment Strategies and Methods

Each of the assignments is keyed to the learning outcomes in the module. Every two to three units, as appropriate, students are provided with:

• a summative assessment

Transferable skills acquired from the taught modules are ultimately applied and tested via the dissertation which applies the generic and core degree scheme skills acquired.

By the end of their programme, all students are expected to be able to demonstrate:

• An ability to apply statistical knowledge in the context of postgraduate research

• An ability to identify appropriate methods for different types of data.

• Skills in analysing and interpreting the results from a range of different statistical analyses

• An ability to generate appropriate research hypotheses and research objectives

• Skills in the assimilation and synthesis of information from published research and databases.

Learning and Teaching

These will be developed through formative as well as assessed coursework programmes which will be accompanied by detailed feedback on performance. As such students will have 3 strands to their developmental learning i.e. structured contact, self-directed learning and key skills.

Assessment Strategies and Methods

Each of the assignments is keyed to the learning outcomes in the module. Every two to three units, as appropriate, students are provided with:

• a summative assessment

• a forum on a current topic

Transferable skills acquired from the taught modules are ultimately applied and tested via the dissertation which applies the generic and core degree scheme skills acquired.